Apparatus for improving grain.



No. 845,017. PATENTED FEB. 19, 1907.

A G. TRETTAU.

APPARATUS FOR IMPROVING GRAIN.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 2. 1906.

1 U TED STATES PATENT onnron.

, APPARATUS FOR IMPROVING-GRAIN.

Specification of Letters Patent.-

Patented Feb. 19, 1907.

O iginal application filed October 26, 1906, Serial No. 284,488 Divided and this auplicatio n filed November 2, 1906. Serial No. 341,6 79- To all whom it may concern).-

Be it known that I, CAR-L TRETTAU, a subject of the King of Prussia, residing at Gimmel, district Oels, Province of Silesia, and German Empire, have invented new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for ImprovingGrain, of which the following is a specification.

The subject of my invention is an ap aratus for improving wheat, rye, and ot er grain with a view to increasing the y1eld of flour and improving the quality thereof.

This-application is a division of my appli o cation, Serial No. 284,438, filed October 26,

- granular form orafter having been coarsely crushed or triturated, whether uncleaned or after being submitted to a preliminary cleaning, by a current of air which after being highly heated is conducted into the grain with the aid of a suitable suction or force pump, ventilator, or the like. The heating of the air may be best effected by electric arcs throu h or past which the air flows; but any ot er suitable flame for producing the same efl'ect'may be employed. The air may be conducted to the grain either in hot condition or after being cooled down.

By means of the electric arcs or the'like any pathogenic bacteria and erms present in the air will be destroyed. he air is itself rendered actually germicidal, and it retains this character even though it may be greatly cooled down. These impurities in the grain, which as above remarked, cannot be got rid of wit cleaning machinery and washing apparatus as commonly employed, are thoroughly removed by means of the treatment of the grain in the new apparatus with the active and purifying current of air. Impuritiessuch as bacteria, fu i, and more highlyor anized animalcules, which'adhere particular y in the fissure and pores of the cuticleare absolutely destro ed.

The treatment of t e grain with the active of the moisture.

and purifying air will naturally be the more complete the more carefully the preliminary cleaning has been effected. The new apparatus, however, has been found extremely efficient even in the case of uncleaned grain. The treatment of the rain with the active and purifying air is e ected by introducing the air into one or several of the clearingmachires through which the grain travels for clearing purposes or into any of the apparatu ses for transporting the grain from one machine to another either in granular form or in a coarsely-crushed state.

In the case of grain submitted to a preliminary washing the present apparatus can be successfully employed in place of special drying-machines at present in use for gettin rid In the old machines, w ich are particularly in use with soft wheat, the -current of air employed for drying is heated by a coke-fire or by means of pipes heated by steam. Such apparatuses, however, are troublesome to manage and expensive in use and are more or less dependent u on the moisture in the air. With wet air it is almost impissible to obtain really well-dried grain.

treated in the new apparatus is admi- I rably adapted for drying washed grain, so

that drying apparatuses such as are at present in use are rendered altogether superfluous. Thus when washed grain is treated with the active purifying air-current not onl will the corn be thoroughly dried, but it wi l at the same time be perfectly cleaned.

My invention is illustrated in the drawing, in which the figure is an elevation of one form of the new apparatus.

a is a pipe having apertures at b, above which arc-lamps c are dis osed. One end of the pipe a is closed, whi e the other end is connected with the ventilator (Z, which causes the air to flow past the arcs into and through the pipe a to the places of work i. e., cleaning-machine, transporting device, or grind in apparatus.

at I do claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

' 1. A paratus for treating grain with a current 0 air, comprising a perforated duot, flame heating means located at the apertures thereof, and means for causing a current of air to pass throu h the apertures and along the duct and to t e grain to be treated, sub; stantially as described.

2. Apparatus for treating grain with a current of air, comprising a perforated duct, name-to thisspecifioation in the presence of electric-arc lamps located at the apertures two subscrlblng Witnesses. thereof, and a ventilator for sucking a cur- 1 CARL TRETTAU rent of air through the apertures and along 5 the duct and delivering it to the grain to be treated, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my Witnesses:

OTTo W. HELLMRICH, IDA CHRIST. HAFERMANN. 

